A man with a history of harassing and threatening Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard has been arrested after he allegedly sent an email to the FBI and media threatening to decapitate the first-term congresswoman.

President Barack Obama has briefed House Speaker John Boehner on Syria in a conversation in which the Republican leader pressed the president to make the case to the nation and Congress for military action.

The White House and a breakout group of eight Republican senators have been unable to find agreement in their attempts at reaching a bipartisan budget deal, separated by long-standing differences over whether to only reduce spending on large benefit programs or whether to combine those cuts with increased tax revenue.